Reviews

The Last Detective by Peter Lovesey

bethnellvaccaro's review against another edition

4.0

A good, old-fashioned mystery with a tough detective. This is the first in the series and I will be reading more.

lauriereyes's review against another edition

3.0

I'm working my way through these audiobooks. They're growing on me. I couldn't stand Peter Diamond in this first one, but as the series progresses I appreciate his character more. These unfold slowly and precisely with a cast of characters that are understated and really British. Not like the community I love over at Penny's Three Pines, but a similar feel and good for audiobooks.

nocto's review against another edition

[I read this for a mailing list discussion so comments may be out of context and will probably contain spoilers]

[on diamond, cliches]

I surprised myself by liking Diamond. At first I thought I wasn't going to hit it off with him and his anti-technology stance was going to bug the hell out of me. After a while though I felt that he wasn't totally against new ways of doing policework just sceptical of the way some of his co-workers thought of them as a *replacement* for old-fashioned policework rather than as a *supplement* to the old methods. And I think that's a viewpoint that's justifiable and isn't comparable to the Luddites. Unless I'm forgetting something I don't remember Diamond stopping his colleagues from using new fangled computers he just wasn't convinced of their time and labour saving merits himself.

I don't think Diamond is "the last detective" but I can see why it looks that way to him. I too was surprised that he was only 41, I hadn't picked up on that in the book. I'd noticed the book was written a decade ago but I'd pegged him as in his 50s and with an attitude slightly older than his age even then.

On the whole I didn't find him a cliche, I think he could very easily have become one and there were a lot of elements of the stereotypical curmudgeounly policeman: he feels out of place with the younger lads coming up the ranks towards him, he has an enquiry hanging over his head, he quits his job but still carries on with the case, and so on, but on the whole I think Lovesey made Diamond realistic.

I'm surprised that this is the first book in the series as it seemed to have a lot of back story fleshing it out. I thought the enquiry was a hangover from a previous book and I thought the story of how he met his wife would have been dealt with before too. In fact they were both elements that were well done and didn't leave me wishing I'd read that book first, obviously, I see now, because there isn't a previous book.

cjeanne99's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Inspector Diamond investigates the murder of a former television star who’s body is found floating in a lake. Her college professor husband did not report her missing - even though she disappeared weeks earlier. As Diamond and his crew investigate - their attention turns to the mother of a boy that the professor had saved form drowning earlier that year. 
The book has multiple narrators - which can be annoying but in this case - it works. We hear Professor Jackman’s account, Dina Didrickson’s account - and of course - Inspector Diamond. Diamond is put off the case - and then quits his job - when the boy (Matthew) develops a concussion after an unsuccessful attempt by the police to question his mother at home.  Diamond takes on some odd jobs - continues to think about the case - talks to Professor Jackman - develops some theories - and eventually solves the murder. 

gretchenv's review against another edition

3.0

This is the first in a popular series. I wasn't wild about this one, but I like to start a series at the beginning and will now move on.

exurbanis's review against another edition

4.0

This was published in 1991 when computers had been in the general work force about 15 years but were not nearly as developed as today. Peter Diamond is the ‘last detective’ because he still insists that leg-work, and not computers, is what will solve a case.

I like Peter Diamond and enjoyed seeing him rely on the ‘old’ methods of detecting, while not completely ignoring the advantages of computer technology. This had a good mystery, with lots of dry humour.

By degrees, the pain spread and became less intense. Diamond opened his eyes. They watered copiously. Just as well, he told himself grimly, because he doubted whether the organ intended for watering would ever function again.

I do intend to carry on with this series. A big thank you to Cathy at Kittling: Books for bringing Lovesey— & Diamond—to my attention.

mrs_merdle's review against another edition

4.0

Well, now I know what to read if I'm in the mood for some Ian Rankin and can't get my hands on one.
A few things:
I found the point of view switches kind of interesting, and realized that I was sorry when they were over.
I'm interested in the author's thought process behind giving his protagonist his own first name.
The detective's wife played an unbelievably small roll. We knew her first name, but she rarely was mentioned, not even showing up when our hero is in the hospital having just woken from a coma of a few days duration.
This is the first in the series, and I will read more.

rld1727's review against another edition

mysterious sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Really enjoyed the plot, was pretty surprised by the resolution. Never really liked Diamond, though—I could tell he was intentionally written to be curmudgeonly, but he just came off as hostile and self-important. I also found it to be getting a bit dated as far as some of the social attitudes, and Diamond’s anti-technology stance felt kind of heavy-handed. But I did really enjoy the story itself!

If you’re reading the Soho Press edition, the actual page 381 is frustratingly missing from the printing, but the publisher has it available on their website (just Google “Soho Books The Last Detective missing page” when you get to that point!)

gulshanbatra's review against another edition

4.0

This is a terrific police procedural, filled with fairly deep detailed characterizations and a somewhat convoluted whodunit.

I actually heard this one on Audible, narrated by Simon Prebble, and that man is a genius narrator. He made the book - I'm convinced - much more interesting than it would have been had I been reading it. But, more on that later.

The plot is quite loopy, and it twists and turns in all directions, and the story is divvied up into different characters' perspectives. Only one part is first-person narrative, but none of that really takes away from the story, which is deliciously intricate, and reminded me more than once of some of the best Jane Marple novels. Meandering, and having a life and mind of their own, the stories had a habit of amusing you, intriguing you, and surprising you too - every now and then. Overall, speed was a problem with this story as well - at least for me. The plot went around in circles at times, and I thought briefly of relegating this book to DNF pile.

This is where the brilliant Mr. Prebble came to the rescue. His narration was like listening to a radio play, the classic episodic broadcasts, filled by not just narrators but by performers. Despite being by himself, Mr. Prebble made it very easy to separate the different characters, and vastly enhanced the enjoyment of the story.

Speaking of which (the story), the book does have its moments when it gently peels back a layer, only to reveal another layer of questions and doubts. The fact that it is a police procedural makes the story move along rather slowly at times, but the interaction between the characters (especially, any scene with Mr. Diamond) fills up the story quite amply and you don't feel like nothing is happening - almost ever. Mr. Diamond is shown to be a force to reckon with, but still there were times when I would have been happy seeing more of him and his actions. Like when he discovers key evidence - towards the end - there was an abrupt cut-to-the-next-scene, that felt as if the author had made up his mind to speed things up a bit, to make up for the slack.

Other than those minor quibbles, this is a good yarn.

I'd definitely look for the next book in the Peter Diamond series.

raesofsun's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No

3.75